I can't get my ferritin above 49. My TSH is optimal but havnt been tested for ages for T4/t3, etc. I have a Viridean Balanced Iron complex which provides 15mg of bisglyycinate Iron along with 100mg of but c, 100ug of folic acid and 50 ug of b12. I also take a good multi with selenium, 400 of folic acid, good levels of B vits etc. I am just taking one of my iron pills a day. Can I take more?

I've been taking ferrous fumarate 210mg, three times per day, for nearly 18 months now. (I've had the odd week or two or three off a few times, just to see how I felt, but each time I've gone down hill fast.) Each pill contains 69mg of elemental iron, so I've been taking 207mg of elemental iron per day. My doctor prescribed this initially, and then I discovered I could buy it from my local pharmacy without a prescription, so I've been doing that since my prescribed ones ran out. I knew my doctor was only interested in getting my levels back into the reference range. I wanted to get things into the optimal range if I possibly could, and it was just easier to leave my doctor out of the equation.

I should point out that I have also been paying for private blood tests for a full blood count, ferritin and iron studies every few months. Too much iron is poisonous and I obviously wanted to keep tabs on things to avoid making my health any worse!